Trump to meet Qatari prime minister as diplomatic push to end Iran war continues

U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Qatar’s prime minister and foreign minister, on Monday in Washington, a diplomatic step aimed at reviving talks to end the war that began on Feb. 28. The meeting follows the recent midterm elections and comes amid continued fighting, including a U.S. strike on Iran’s Qeshm Island and Iranian attacks on tankers in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has offered a truce that would lift the U.S. blockade of its ports, ease some sanctions and halt bombing in exchange for Tehran ending its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, with further discussions on its nuclear programme and additional sanctions to follow. The United States has repeatedly rejected the proposal; Secretary of State Marco Rubio described Tehran’s conditions as “outrageous and ridiculous and really not realistic.”

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei defended the offer as the most reasonable on the table. Senior U.S. Republicans, including Vice President JD Vance, have linked recent electoral losses to the war, but Rubio said a diplomatic breakthrough is not imminent. An Emirati senior official, Anwar Gargash, echoed the view, warning that a comprehensive political settlement appears difficult.

Vance, who led negotiations for a short-lived truce in June, will also meet Al-Thani, whose country has acted as a key mediator since the conflict began. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he told Trump that Turkey does not want further escalation and emphasized the need for dialogue.

The latest U.S. strike on Qeshm Island targeted radar systems and missile-launch facilities, according to a senior Iranian source, but did not affect vital infrastructure. Iranian state media reported that 11 tankers had been “disabled” in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz over the past ten days, marking the highest rate of attacks since the war’s onset. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group also claimed responsibility for striking a Saudi Aramco office building in Riyadh.

Despite growing regional anxiety and domestic political pressure, officials on both sides indicate that a decisive resolution remains uncertain.